Conventionally, there has been known a tape cartridge installed in a tape writer having a print head, the tape cartridge including a cartridge case, a tape-shaped member having a release tape affixed to the rear side of a print tape and accommodated in the cartridge case so as to be capable of being paid out, and a platen rotatably accommodated in the cartridge case on the side of the release tape of the tape-shaped member and feeds by rotation the tape-shaped member held between the platen and the print head. In addition, the tape cartridge includes a tape guide pin at a position upstream of the platen in a tape feed direction and on the side of the print surface of the tape. The tape guide pin projects from the bottom wall of the tape cartridge with its tip end fitting in a top wall and contacts the tape over the whole tape width. In the tape cartridge configured as described above, the tape is held between the platen and the tape guide pin when the platen moves to an upstream side in the tape feed direction as the tape is drawn, whereby the tape is not further drawn. As a result, the tip end of the tape is prevented from getting in the cartridge case (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In the tape cartridge, the tape is curved like an “S”-shape in its front and rear direction over the whole tape width on the feed path from the tape guide pin to the platen.
In addition, the present applicant has proposed a sheet cartridge installed in a tape printing apparatus provided with a light sensor having a light-emission element and a light-reception element facing each other, the sheet cartridge including a label sheet having a plurality of label-position detection convex pieces obtained by making its one side in a sheet width direction partially laterally projected in the sheet width direction, and a cartridge case in which the label sheet is accommodated so as to be capable of being paid out, wherein the outer surface of the cartridge case has an area in which the plurality of label-position detection convex pieces is exposed one after another for detection by a light sensor as the tape-shaped member is paid out (see Patent Document 2).
[Patent Document 1] JP-A-10-157235
[Patent Document 2] JP-A-2012-171079
In the conventional tape cartridge, the platen (platen roller) and the tape guide pin (drawing prevention portion) are provided at positions at which they overlap with each other in a traverse direction traversing the tape feed path. Therefore, the tape-shaped member is curved like an “S”-shape over the whole tape width on the feed path from the tape guide pin to the platen.
However, the print tape is likely to be partially released from the release tape at the curved spot. Therefore, the print tape at the released spot (separated from the release tape) is folded to its rear surface side in a shrinking state in a length direction to make the rear surfaces affixed to each other. As a result, there is a likelihood that the print tape becomes wrinkled. If the print tape becomes wrinkled, printing cannot be appropriately performed on the print tape at the spot and also the wrinkle gets stuck on the tape delivery port of the cartridge case, which may cause a factor responsible for jamming.
In addition, when the respective detection convex portions of the tape-shaped member enter the light sensor in a state of being curved like an “S”-shape in the front and rear direction, there is a likelihood that the respective detection convex portions cannot appropriately enter the area between the light-emission element and the light-reception element of the light sensor compared with a case in which the respective detection convex portions enter the light sensor in a state of being formed into a linear shape.
The present invention has an object of providing a tape cartridge, which allows the respective detection convex portions of a tape-shaped member to appropriately enter the area between the light-emission element and the light-reception element of a light sensor and prevents a print tape from becoming wrinkled while preventing the tip end of the tape-shaped member from getting in the cartridge case, and a tape printing apparatus having the tape cartridge.